plural allopolyploids
: an individual that is a hybrid of two different species and that possesses more than two sets of chromosomes
Allopolyploids include important crops such as wheat, cotton, and canola, and all have improved agricultural traits relative to their diploid progenitors. … The commercially important cottons are naturally formed allopolyploids … and they have superior fiber yield and quality relative to their ancestral species. Kenji Osabe et al.

called also amphiploid

compare autopolyploid
allopolyploid adjective
allopolyploid plants

Word History

Etymology

allo- + polyploid

First Known Use

1928, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of allopolyploid was in 1928

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Allopolyploid.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/allopolyploid. Accessed 10 Mar. 2025.

Medical Definition

allopolyploid

noun
: an individual that is a hybrid of two different species and that possesses more than two sets of chromosomes

called also amphiploid

compare autopolyploid
allopolyploid adjective
allopolyploidy noun
plural allopolyploidies
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